By Mathew K. Jallow
This is not another heart-wrenching narrative about the intoxicating barbarity, which the AFPRC military regime has foisted on the Gambia for the past twenty years. Far from it. It is a narrative about a struggle in much need of unanimity in action and a clear sense of direction. What brought Gambians around to this level of political discourse is a long, painful journey fraught with daunting pitfalls and seemingly intractable obstacles; often unanticipated and invisible, and sometimes deliberate and man-made. It is a learning process in which the cries of agony and the voices of acrimony constantly echo in the valley of despair.
The severe psychological trauma arising from Gambia’s shocking lack of political freedom is absolutely devastating, yet through all the pain and agony, a modicum of hope has always remained tethered to the realization of an inevitability that this dark chapter of the Gambia’s cheerless history may sooner rather than later crumble from the slow drip of the festering economic decrepitude or inevitable spontaneous popular uprising. In spite of the regularity of the regime’s deadly policy decisions, the unravelling economy and the bigotry of willful tribal divisions exacerbated by rigid barriers to political freedom, Gambians have consistently failed the practical challenges of citizenship in creating a unified dissident in opposition to the nightmare tearing the Gambia apart at the seams. And for all the Gambian organizations engaged in the struggle for political liberty, similarities of objectives present a unique opportunity to interface action plans and work in tandem to eject a craven regime so rabidly consumed by the trappings of imperial power.
As the arrogant arbitrariness, which has created the pariah state, continues to steer Gambia towards crushing economic idiosyncrasy and malevolent diplomatic isolation, the triviality and pettiness that also challenge the struggle, begins to pale in comparison. The existential threat posed by the regime’s asinine mindset, so pivotal in spawning the islands of independent voices and broad diversity of opinions, also crystallizes the challenges that necessitate the coalescing of Gambian dissident for the final push to political liberty. If Gambians formed heterogeneous institutions of political struggle, they remain united by the vibrancy of the innate will to be free. The lingering differences in tactic and strategy, however profound, are not ossified around irreconcilable ideological obstinacy, but rather, underscore the need and necessity for a common-ground that maintains the broader national interest as the centerpiece of the liberation’s effort. The infrequent waves of trivial and inconsequential conflicts, and rare lack of consensus,often color the struggle, yet the eruptions of unnecessary flares of friction, are moments of opportunity for reflection and learning; notwithstanding the intensities of the divisive rancor that often obscures the dissident agenda in a cloud of animosity. The struggle to remove Yahya Jammeh, weighed down by self-interest and a lack of objective reasoning, is, nonetheless, supported by a broad swath of the Gambian population, for whom the sanguinary nature of the regime fundamentally disagrees with the true character of blue-blood Gambians.
Despite the overwhelming indignities of tyranny, a plurality of Gambians still remains faithful to the true values of common humanity and the superiority of selflessness. Clearly, instances of disagreements occasionally manifest in differences in strategic opinion, yet this can serve the struggle positively if embraced as educational moments, rather than to further foment discord. Today, the Gambian liberation struggle is riding a wave of international support, but difficulties in centralizing dissident messages and action plans, often diverts attention to the challenges of the struggle rather than to its great promise and opportunity. The spitefulness, which totally lacks relevance to the onerous task of restoring democracy and the rule of law in the Gambia, ought not predominate in the political debate or subvert the struggle’s intentions into irrelevant distractions. The baseless is characterization of activists, apart from frequently showcasing a patently malicious intent, demonstrates a far less clear underpinning than the agenda for the removal of Yahya Jammeh from his celestial perch. Certainly, no one expects the intersection of the multiplicity of strategies to flow seamlessly without the perils of forceful disagreements, yet familiarity with similar situations, past and present, offer glimmers of hope that a struggle led by Gambians of broad intellectual appeal and moral fortitude, has a chance at success. And the struggle to restore sanity in Gambia, once so full of determination and energy, cannot now be allowed to wither away for lack of passion and enthusiasm. The stakes are high; Gambians must rise up to the challenge. The time is now.